Vegan Trumps Vegetarian for Weight Loss

Forget the fad diets; a vegan diet provides the best results says a new study.

For anyone looking to manage their weight, a vegan diet has been shown to be the most effective way to do so. A recent study conducted in Taiwan assigned specific eating regimes to 1,151 participants and collected weight loss data for 74 weeks. Participants were required to follow several different diets, including vegan, vegetarian, and those containing animal products, particularly the Atkins diet. Researchers found that as a group, vegetarians and vegans lost 4.6 pounds more than meat-eaters. What’s more, vegans lost about 2.3 pounds more than vegetarians. Study leader Dr. Ru-Yi Huang attributes this increased weight loss to “the abundant intake of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables,” placing a special emphasis on fiber (a macronutrient lacking in animal products) as the reasoning behind his findings.